“[T]he occasion was an opportunity to showcase ... his anthroposophical ‘spiritual science,’ of which the practice of Waldorf education was an important, even primary, application.”  — Anthroposophist Christopher Bamford, introduction to THE SPIRITUAL GROUND OF EDUCATION, The Foundations of Waldorf Education (Anthroposophic Press, 2004), a collection of lectures by Rudolf Steiner, p. vii. 

The “occasion” was a speech Rudolf Steiner delivered in Britain. But that isn’t important. Here’s what’s important:

Advocates of Waldorf education often deny that Waldorf schools are deeply immersed in the occult belief system called Anthroposophy (aka “spiritual science”). At most, they tend to acknowledge that Waldorf schools take inspiration from the founder of Anthroposophy, Rudolf Steiner, and/or that the schools base their methods on Steiner’s “insights” as expressed in Anthroposophy. But in truth, the bond between the schools and the occult system are strong and deep. As a primary “application” of the system, the schools essentially embody the system in the crucial sphere of education. Waldorf schools apply Anthroposophy to the lives of children.

In the past, I have called Waldorf schools stalking horses for Anthroposophy; I have called them front organizations for Anthroposophy. But don’t listen to me. And don’t listen to even such a learned individual as Christopher Bamford. Listen instead to Rudolf Steiner. What connection, if any, did Steiner see between the schools he started and the occult system he created?

Addressing Waldorf school teachers, Steiner said, “[W]e have to remember that an institution like the Independent Waldorf School with its anthroposophical character, has goals that, of course, coincide with anthroposophical desires. At the moment, though, if that connection were made official, people would break the Waldorf School’s neck." — Rudolf Steiner, FACULTY MEETINGS WITH RUDOLF STEINER (Anthroposophic Press, 1998), p. 705.

Steiner’s metaphor is rather violent, but his point is well taken. If people understood that Waldorf schools are deeply committed to the goals and “desires” of Anthroposophy, they would rise up in opposition to the schools. Anthroposophy is occult. Rudolf Steiner was an occultist. And Waldorf schools are mired in occultism. With their “anthroposophical character,” they have “goals that, of course, coincide with anthroposophical desires.”

In other words, the purpose of Waldorf education is to spread Anthroposophy. We have Steiner’s word on this, as well. Speaking in the first Waldorf school, Steiner said, “One of the most important facts about the background of the Waldorf School is that we were in a position to make the anthroposophical movement a relatively large one. The anthroposophical movement has become a large one.” — Rudolf Steiner, RUDOLF STEINER IN THE WALDORF SCHOOL (Anthroposophic Press, 1996), p.156.

Anthroposophy would exist without Waldorf schools — albeit in a much reduced form — but the schools could not exist without Anthroposophy. Waldorf schools are applied Anthroposophy.

[To dig into some of these matters, see, e.g., "Everything", "Faculty Meetings", "Secrets", "Here's the Answer", "Occultism", and "The Waldorf Teacher's Consciousness". Also see the item from the Quote of the Day page, at the end of this page.]

"If these ideas are not true, they should be true. What we believe shapes the reality. If we become conscious of these ideas and hold them, they will become true." — Anthroposophist Ronald E. Koetzsh, RENEWAL: A Journal for Waldorf Education, Vol. 15, No. 1. 

These plaintive words were written as the conclusion of "Anthroposophy 101", Ronald Koetzsh’s summary of Steiner's basic teachings. Koetzsh’s words expand on ideas we saw previously: “If [a person] learns systematically to apply his will to his own thinking ... it becomes God-thinking, a creative force itself.” — Francis Edmunds, AN INTRODUCTION TO STEINER EDUCATION (Sophia Books, 2004), p. 7. [See the next Quote, below.]

The concept underlying both statements is the idea that our thoughts, being immaterial, are spiritual. Thus, Anthroposophists believe, our thoughts take on autonomous existence in the spirit realm: They become living spiritual beings who dwell in the spirit realm. In other words, our thoughts have a Godlike power to create realities: They create themselves in a higher, spiritual form in higher, spiritual worlds. Therefore, Koetzsh says, if Steiner was wrong about various things, we can remedy the situation by thinking that he was right. If we think this hard enough and long enough, our thoughts will create the reality Steiner described.

There is an obvious flaw in the statements made by Koetzsh and Edmunds. Thinking something — or wishing it — doesn't make it true. I’m almost embarrassed to have to explain this, but because the point is not clear to Anthroposophists, let’s dwell on it for a moment.

Our thoughts or wishes can be our guides, our motivators — but in and of themselves, our thoughts and wishes create nothing. Thinking something doesn't cause that thing to be true. Some thoughts are false, period, and no amount of fervent belief can make them true. You may fervently believe that the moon is made of green cheese. But no matter how many people you recruit to share this belief, and no matter how fervently and your co-believers cherish this delusion, the moon will never be made of green cheese. 

But the moon is a physical object, and Koetzsh was mainly talking about spiritual realities. Can false ideas about spiritual realities be made true through the power of our thoughts? Possibly. But almost certainly not. Truth is truth, reality is reality. We have no reason to think that the universe is as Steiner described it, and we have no reason to think that we can make the universe become as Steiner described it. A fairy tale is a fairy tale. (Note the illogic of Koetzsh’s proposition. Without seeming to realize it, he argues in effect that we can make Steiner’s false ideas true only if those false ideas are already true — i.e., only if the spirit realm already is as Steiner described it, flexible and mutable, made and remade by our thoughts. So while seeming to entertain the possibility that Steiner was wrong, Koetzsh actually relies on the premise that Steiner was right. Koezsch is caught in a tautological vortex.)

Anthroposophical thinking is mere wishfulness, which is tantamount to self-deception. As Steiner's hero, Goethe, said (and there's an irony here), "A confusion of the real with the ideal never goes unpunished." The punishment Anthroposophists often incur is that they may waste their lives in a warm, hazy set of delusions.

“I well remember meeting a charming child of eleven, daughter of a Dutch father and a partly Mexican-Indian mother, almost all of whose female relatives were clairvoyant, and several were mediums. Little Alexandrina used to prattle on about the dead, what they were doing, where they were, when she had seen them before, all in the most natural manner in the world. Part of what she said could be confirmed, and the perfectly correct facts that she gave could not have been learned in any other way. The young Rudolf Steiner was also very well aware of the nature spirits [i.e., “elemental beings” that reside within nature] with whom, indeed, he held converse, again not unlike many other children...." —Anthroposophist Stewart Copinger Easton, RUDOLF STEINER: Herald of a New Epoch (SteinerBooks, 1980), pp. 17-18. 

Stewart C. Easton is highly regarded among Anthroposophists. Perhaps he deserves this regard. He earned it, however, not my telling truths but by indulging in the sort of gullible illogic that characterizes so much of Anthroposophy.

Here we see Easton affirming Steiner’s claims that a) clairvoyance is a real faculty, and b) young children possess natural clairvoyance. How convincing is Stewart's statement? How does he know, for instance, that numerous "female relatives" (grandmothers? aunts? cousins?) in a certain family were clairvoyant? What evidence does he produce? Zero.

And what about the clairvoyant child? Stewart assures us that her descriptions of the activities and whereabouts of the dead were wonderfully natural and contained many verifiable facts. But what where these facts, and how were they confirmed? Stewart doesn't say. And how does Stewart know that these “facts” (if any) “could not have been learned in any other way?” He doesn’t say. He makes a bold claim, one that Anthroposophists gladly accept, but he does nothing to support it. Instead, he leaps to his preferred idea — the child is clairvoyant! — without considering other possibilities. • Children are imaginative, often inventing imaginary companions. Is this was Alexandrina was doing? • If Alexandrina had met some of the dead individuals before their deaths ("she had seen them before"), she may have known quite a bit about them from ordinary observation and memory. • If Alexandrina ever overheard adults talking about various dead relatives, she may have learned a lot as a result. But Stewart considers none of this. Rather, he leaps past logic and evidence to draw a typical Anthroposophical conclusion: Amazing! Aunt Claudia has been dead these many years, yet Alexandrina knows she was tall! The child must be clairvoyant!

As for the youthful clairvoyance of Rudolf Steiner, what evidence does Stewart produce, what argument does he make? Zero. He accepts Rudolf’s word just as he accepts Alexandrina’s. He likes what they say, so he accepts their reports uncritically, gullibly, ingenuously. This, I'm afraid, is a fair sample of Anthroposophical discourse.

“Rudolf Steiner intended Waldorf education to be a preparation for life ... Education should follow human nature, should orient itself to the universal nature of the developing human being, whilst addressing the specific needs of individuals in their time and space.” — Martyn Rawson, foreword to Anthroposophist Francis Edmunds’ AN INTRODUCTION TO STEINER EDUCATION (Sophia Books, 2004), p. xiii.

Waldorf schools have high and noble purposes, and they are generally staffed by conscientious, well-meaning individuals. Good intentions, however, are not necessarily sufficient. Is the Waldorf view of the world and of human nature realistic? Is it rooted in true knowledge?

The “preparation for life” offered by Waldorf schools centers on an idea that Waldorf faculties consider fundamental but that the rest of humanity may deem nonsense. A child is properly prepared for life, according to Waldorf belief, only when his/her invisible bodies are incarnated. The etheric body generally incarnates at about age 7, the astral body at about age 14, and the “I” at about age 21. Much of what happens in Waldorf schools is predicated on this idea. Unless you consider the idea true, Waldorf education may not suit you or your child. [For information on our invisible bodies and the seven-year stages of human development, see "Most Significant" and the "Index".]

What is “the universal nature of the developing human being”? In part, it is what we have just seen: the incarnation of invisible bodies to supplement the physical body. But the Waldorf view of human nature is even more involuted and fantastical. [For an overview, see “Holistic Education” and "Our Parts".] Fundamentally, according to Waldorf belief, we are the central spiritual beings in the universe [see “The Center”], worshipped by the gods, evolving from Saturn to Vulcan and beyond [see “Everything”], where/when we will ultimately become God the Father. This is all quite flattering, but to believe it you must subscribe — as most Waldorf teachers do — to Rudolf Steiner’s occult doctrines.

How about “the specific needs of individuals in their time and space”? How well do Waldorf schools respect and address the students’ individual needs? According to Waldorf belief, each individual has lived many previous lives, and s/he arrives in this life with a karma that needs to be fulfilled. In addition, s/he has a “temperament” (sanguine, phlegmatic, choleric, or melancholic) that must be respected (class assignments, seating, etc., will be based at least in part on “temperament” [see “Temperaments”]). Moreover, each child is a member of a racial group, and this membership crucially reflects her/his level of spiritual evolution. (Steiner taught that blacks are the least evolved, whites are the most — see “Races”].) To an unfortunate degree, Waldorf schools treat students not as individuals but as members of various categories, and quite often the schools' attitudes on these matters are benighted. (The most unfortunate children, according to Waldorf belief, are those who are not really human beings at all but demons in disguise. Such kids are likely to be expelled, since, as Steiner said,  "We cannot ... create a school for demons." —  Rudolf Steiner, FACULTY MEETINGS WITH RUDOLF STEINER (Anthroposophic Press, 1998), p. 650).

Waldorf schools have high and noble purposes, but their view of the world and of human nature is deeply unrealistic — and this view informs everything about the schools.

“[W]e are interested in what shaped Rudolf Steiner as an educator. Certainly, his native clairvoyant capacities played a role, as did his scientific training. Nor should mention be omitted of the crucial human and spiritual encounters that marked his early years: Felix Kogutsky, the herb gatherer, with whom Steiner became friends and with whom he could speak about the spiritual world as with someone of experience; [and] the otherwise unnamed Master....”   — Christopher Bamford, introduction to THE EDUCATION OF THE CHILD, Foundations of Waldorf Education (Anthroposophic Press, 1996), a collection of Rudolf Steiner’s teachings about education, p. viii.

This is a remarkably concise statement concerning the irrationality upon which Waldorf schooling is built. • Some of Steiner’s teachings (most of them, actually) come from his claimed clairvoyant abilities. But he was not clairvoyant. No one is clairvoyant. Therefore all of these teachings are bunk. [See “Clairvoyance”.]  • Seiner had studied science, but he was no scientist. The only “science” he did was “spiritual science,” which hinged on the use of clairvoyance. This returns us to the first point: knowledge gained through clairvoyance is no knowledge at all and provides no basis for a sound education. [See “Fooling”, “Will”, and “Is Anthroposophy Science?”] • Concerning “human and spiritual encounters”: Steiner claimed to be a two-time occult initiate — i.e., a mystic insider, privy to the deepest occult secrets. Not content to claim that he had been initiated once — which any run-of-the-mill occultist might do — he said he had been initiated on two separate occasions, once by a spiritualistic gardener, Felix Kogutsky, and later by an unnamed “Master” (sometimes referred to as “M” and believed by Anthroposophists to have been Christian Rosenkreutz — although Christian Rosenkreutz is a legendary figure who never existed [see "Rosy Cross"].)

Where does this leave us? If you agree with me that the points listed by Bamford are obvious nonsense (bunk, piffle, delusion, looniness), then you should steer clear of the Waldorf universe. But if you disagree with me — if you think Bamford and Steiner make good, levelheaded sense — then the Waldorf way of thinking may be just what you’re looking for.

There are Waldorf schools and Waldorf schools. Some of the schools adhere more closely to Rudolf Steiner’s occult vision than others do. “Waldorf-inspired” schools often try to employ Waldorf methods without embracing Anthroposophical occultism. And Waldorf schools that seek taxpayer support sometimes stray from Anthroposophical true belief (or at least they work extra hard to conceal their devotion to Anthroposophy). 

But leaders in the Anthroposophical/Waldorf movement work hard to enforce full acceptance of Steiner’s teachings within Waldorf schools. As one instructor in a Waldorf teacher-training program has said, “I am a missionary for Rudolf Steiner.” [See “Teacher Training”.] When evaluating a Waldorf school, the safest assumption is that the school is a true-blue Anthroposophical religious institution. Proceed on this assumption until you discover irrefutable evidence to the contrary. In some cases, such evidence may turn up. In many other cases, such evidence cannot be found, for those schools are staunch in their Anthroposophical beliefs.

The "disaster" that would result, if Waldorf schools strayed from their underlying purpose [see "Here's the Answer"], would be the defeat of the messianic mission that Rudolf Steiner assigned to Waldorf teachers. Steiner explained that Waldorf teachers should, in all their endeavors, serve the gods' wondrous plan for universal spiritual evolution. “Among the faculty, we must certainly carry within us the knowledge that we are not here for our own sakes, but to carry out the divine cosmic plan. We should always remember that when we do something, we are actually carrying out the intentions of the gods, that we are, in a certain sense, the means by which that streaming down from above will go out into the world.” — Rudolf Steiner, FACULTY MEETINGS WITH RUDOLF STEINER (Anthroposophic Press, 1998), p. 55.

Waldorf faculties take themselves very seriously. They credit themselves with the highest motives. And Anthroposophical insiders press to ensure that Waldorf faculties do not stray from their mission.

“A horde of fourth grade berserkers rise from the darkness of the hall to stamp onto the stage ... [The child who plays the Norse god] Thor, though one of the smallest in the class, has an enormous voice to match the famous Thor’s Hammer ... The bit where Thor ... knocks the taunting warriors off their benches in well choreographed waves of destruction, is particularly impressive ... [E]ach festival is embedded in a cycle of festivals which ... express the inner mood of the spiritual calendar ... [F]estivals are also linked to the intuitive realm of the future. In an age in which traditional forms of ritual and community are fading, the Steiner Waldorf Schools strive to cultivate a new, free consciousness of time, human development and community.”  — Christopher Clouder and Martyn Rawson, WALDORF EDUCATION - Rudolf Steiner’s Ideas in Practice (Floris Books, 1998), pp. 10-16.

The festivals at Waldorf schools are meant to be attractive and festive. Often they are used as PR devices, charming parents and attracting new families to the fold. (Violence is sometimes depicted — the myths celebrated in Waldorf schools are often very violent — but only in "choreographed" form.)

The festivals are also religious observances. On p. 39 of their book, Clouder and Rawson include a photo of a Whitsun festival at a Waldorf school (Whitsunday, or Pentecost, celebrates the descent from Heaven of the Holy Spirit). Many Waldorf festivals have an apparently Christian character, but the roots of the festivals run back to pagan beliefs — as is suggested by the enactment of Thor’s adventures. 

The “cycle” observed is that of the seasons as understood by the ancients. The “inner mood of the spiritual calendar” embodies the occult or hidden significance of the cycle. The “intuitive realm of the future” is a reference to clairvoyance and to the future states of humanity Rudolf Steiner has described using his claimed clairvoyant powers — a future in which intuition or clairvoyance will be widespread, Anthroposophists believe. 

The “new, free consciousness” that Waldorf schools attempt to cultivate is the imaginative, intuitive, clairvoyant consciousness needed to follow Steiner into the new age. The “human development” mentioned is the spiritual evolution of humanity that is the core aim of Anthroposophy. Waldorf schools are wedded to the aims of Anthroposophy.

As always at Waldorf schools, there is more (and less) going on than meets the eye. Note that the goals of Waldorf schools have little to do with education as it is usually understood — that is, the development of the brain and the acquisition of real knowledge about the real world. Instead, almost everything done at Waldorf schools is guided by Rudolf Steiner’s occult teachings.

"When a foundation of observation and disciplined thinking is established, the [Waldorf] high school science teacher now introduces a new type of thinking ... [T]his 'new' thinking is called phenomenological thinking ... [F]irst a phenomenon is carefully observed; second, the rigors and laws of thinking and science are applied ... third, everything up to now is laid to rest, the mind is cleared, and the phenomenon itself is allowed to speak. The student observes what comes forward while keeping the mind from straying ... This activity opens on up to new possibilities ... This type of thinking is freed from the senses and allows the universe to speak through the individual. It is a type of thinking which is truly moral and can be the fertile ground for the 'new' science of the twenty-first century." — Waldorf teacher David S. Mitchell, THE WONDERS OF WALDORF CHEMISTRY (Association of Waldorf Schools of North America, 2004), pp. 12-13.

The "new" thinking is a form of meditation ("the mind is cleared ... keeping the mind from straying"). It is the sort of thinking Steiner advocated for attaining clairvoyant powers. It is "freed from the senses" because Steiner taught that clairvoyance is seated not in the physical brain but in nonphysical organs of clairvoyance. 

Waldorf students who attempt the "new" kind of thinking may not leap straight to clairvoyance (in reality, they cannot, since clairvoyance is a fantasy). But by using "phenomenological thinking" as described by Mitchell, they will be on their way (or so their Waldorf teachers hope). Phenomena and/or the universe itself will "speak through the individual" as through a clairvoyant or seer.

The thinking Mitchell refers to is hardly new. It is an approach advocated by the German author Johann Wolfgang von Goethe and embraced by Steiner. [See "Goethe".] So-called "Goethean science" is meant to be an alternative and corrective to conventional science. And as Steiner arranged matters, Goethean science leads to "spiritual science," i.e. Steiner's own doctrines, i.e. Anthroposophy. "[T]he science [Steiner] spoke of was not conventional science of the abstract mechanical-materialist type. Modern science in this sense was, in fact, a deviation ... The corrective was to create an alternative science based on different assumptions." — Christopher Bamford, introducing Steiner's WHAT IS ANTHROPOSOPHY? (Anthroposophic Press, 2002), p. 19.

But Goethean science is not real science at all; it is a misconstruction of scientific procedures and values. In this sense (pace Bamford), the form of "science" found in Waldorf schools is the deviation from truth and the search for truth. Yet it is close to the heart of the Waldorf enterprise. Waldorf schools try to inculcate a meditative form of thought that leads students toward accepting Anthroposophy. Students taking a class that may seem to be conventional science (chemistry) wind up being introduced to a form of thinking that leads them into Goethean science ("Waldorf chemistry") and, by indirection, on to "spiritual science" (Anthroposophy). Waldorf schools exist to promote Anthroposophy. This is what Mitchell and Bamford and Steiner have told us, without meaning to be quite so direct about it. (Although sometimes they have come close. "Anthroposophy will be in the school when it is objectively justified, that is, when it is called for by the material itself.” — Rudolf Steiner, FACULTY MEETINGS WITH RUDOLF STEINER (Anthroposophic Press, 1998), p. 495. And when will the material — seen through the "new" way of thinking — call for it? Just about always.)

[To go into this more deeply, see "Steiner's 'Science'"; scroll down to "Mitchell".]

“The success of Waldorf Education, Rudolf Steiner [said], can be measured in the life force attained. Not acquisition of knowledge and qualifications, but the life force is the ultimate goal of this school.” — Peter Selg, THE ESSENCE OF WALDORF EDUCATION (SteinerBooks, 2010)‚ p. 30.

When thinking about Waldorf schools, you should always remember that the primary goal of these schools is not to give children a good education (“not acquisition of knowledge and qualifications”). The schools exist to support the religion of Anthroposophy, and they seek to steer students and their families toward the “living” spiritual forces and beings described by Rudolf Steiner. The schools often pursue these goals surreptitiously; they often deny what they are doing; but this is indeed what they are doing.

Another point needs to be made. When the schools pursue their occult purposes without the knowledge and explicit consent of the students’ parents, their actions are profoundly immoral. Waldorf faculties rationalize their behavior, believing that they are fulfilling a higher morality, implementing the messianic mission of Anthroposophy. But few parents will be appeased when they learn of such actions and rationalizations.

“And yet, in a broad and universal way, the Waldorf school is essentially religious. The word religion comes from the Latin root religare, which means essentially to re-link. Young children are not yet un-linked from their spiritual connection ... For their continued spiritual development, children need only a little outward instruction. According to Rudolf Steiner, they simply need to be taught in a balanced three-dimensional way, one that develops head, heart, and hands to preserve their innate religious awareness.   Although the notion that a balanced education fosters spiritual awareness may seem simplistic, it is based on a theory of knowledge that is at the heart of the Waldorf approach.” — Waldorf teacher Jack Petrash, UNDERSTANDING WALDORF EDUCATION (Nova Institute, 2002), pp. 134-135.

There is much to quarrel with in Petrash’s statement. Anthroposophy is itself a sect; it certainly has a creed; and the chief proselytizing effort made by Anthroposophists is represented by Waldorf schools. [See “Is Anthroposophy a RelIgion?”, “Here’s the Answer”, “Spiritual Agenda”, and “Soul School”.] But the main point Petrash makes is certainly true. “[T]he Waldorf school is essentially religious.”

“Waldorf education takes a spiritual view of what it means to be a human being, and is grounded in a path of personal development called anthroposophy, developed by Rudolf Steiner. We do not see ourselves as a religious school, however, and students are not taught any particular religious or spiritual doctrine.” — Washington Waldorf School [http://www.washingtonwaldorf.org/WWS_at_a_Glance.html]

When Waldorf faculties make such statements, they may be telling the truth — as they understand it. On other occasions, they may be quite consciously trying to mislead the public. But let’s be charitable and assume that all such statements by Waldorf schools are sincere. Where does this leave us?

Statements of this sort arise from a number of factors. For starters, Anthroposophists almost always deny that Anthroposophy is a religion. This denial is untrue, but it provides the essential first line of defense for Waldorf schools. If Anthroposophy is not a religion, then Waldorf schools are not religious institutions even if they teach Anthroposophical doctrines to the students. But Anthroposophy actually is a religion [see “Is Anthroposophy a Religion?”], so this line of defense fails.

The second level of the Waldorf defense — often invoked sincerely — is that the schools do not teach Anthroposophy to the kids, so therefore the schools are not religious institutions even if Anthroposophy itself is a religion. But this denial, too, is flawed. Many Anthroposophical doctrines do indeed get imparted to Waldorf students [see “Spiritual Agenda”]. Generally this occurs through an indirect process of suggestion and implication, rather than through direct instruction — but it happens. If you were to observe this class or that, on this day or that, you might detect little religious or esoteric content. But gradually, over time, such content makes itself felt among the students. The atmosphere in a Waldorf school is usually redolent with religious feeling [see “Here’s the Answer”], and the school year is punctuated by the celebration of religious festivals [see “Magical Arts”]. The schools may not openly profess their faith, but they enact it, and this certainly has an effect on most students, especially those who attend the schools for many years.

One more point needs to be made. Many Waldorf teachers and parents are quite unaware of the religious nature of Waldorf schooling, at least initially. Thus, they may accept the prayers recited by Waldorf students as pretty “verses,” nothing more [see “Prayers”], and they may consider the celebration of such festivals are Michaelmas merely quaint seasonal festivities. But if so, they are fooling themselves. The inner circle within most Waldorf faculties is aware that virtually everything that happens at a Waldorf school has occult, spiritual significance.* When Waldorf representatives deny this, we should not be taken in. [See “Soul School”.] The deception and, indeed, self-deception practiced in Waldorf schools should not cloud our own eyes.

Let’s give the last word to the founder of Waldorf education. "It is possible to introduce a religious element into every subject, even into math lessons. Anyone who has some knowledge of Waldorf teaching will know that this statement is true." — Rudolf Steiner, THE CHILD's CHANGING CONSCIOUSNESS AS THE BASIS OF PEDAGOGICAL PRACTICE (Anthroposophic Press, 1996), p. 94.

* Clearly, it is offensive to tell people that they don’t know what they are doing, that they are deceiving themselves. But in many cases, Anthroposophists do indeed deceive themselves. Even members of the innermost Waldorf circle may operate in a state of denial and self-deception. When, for example, Waldorf teachers use “clairvoyance” to determine the “temperaments" of their students, they are practicing a twofold deception on themselves. Clairvoyance is a fantasy, and the ancient four-slot system of categorization (phlegmatic, melancholic, sanguine, choleric) that Waldorf teachers use to sort out their students has no basis in truth. [See “Clairvoyance” and “Humouresque”.]

Rudolf Steiner insisted that Anthroposophy is a science, not a religion, and his followers cling to this claim despite all the evidence to the contrary — indeed, they cling to it despite the admissions that Steiner himself sometimes made, apparently inadvertently. For instance, "[T]he Anthroposophical Society ... provides religious instruction just as other religious groups do." — Rudolf Steiner, FACULTY MEETINGS WITH RUDOLF STEINER (Anthroposophic Press, 1998), p. 706. The Anthroposophical society does not do science, it embraces a religion (Anthroposophy) that it works to spread “just as other religious groups do." One of the places they do this is in Waldorf schools. But hush! “[A]n institution like the Independent Waldorf School with its anthroposophical character, has goals that, of course, coincide with anthroposophical desires. At the moment, though, if that connection were made official, people would break the Waldorf School’s neck." — Rudolf Steiner, FACULTY MEETINGS WITH RUDOLF STEINER, p. 705.

The plausibility of everything Steiner ever taught, after his conversion to occultism, depends on his ability to read the Akasha Chronicle. What do you think? Are you convinced?

* In Theosophy and Anthroposophy, “akasha” is a universal ether, sometimes defined as starlight. The Akasha Chronicle or Record is a sort of universal encyclopedia recording everything that have ever happened (which may include everything that will happen), inscribed on akasha.

** IMO.

*** IMO. 

[See, e.g., “Akasha” and “Clairvoyance”.]

The Waldorf view of childhood is greatly complicated by Steiner's occult doctrines. Thus, for instance, Steiner was devoted to the number 3, which he considered magical.* Thus, he divided childhood into three sets of three elements, and he said children pass through three stages (each seven years long). To make this system coherent, he hammered together things that are actually quite different, as when he spoke of the "limb-metabolic system." (Consult any legitimate medical text. We have arms and legs, and we have a metabolism, but these are separate; there is no limb-metabolic system.) Nonetheless, Steiner is believed by most Waldorf teachers. Here is how childhood is described by a leading advocate of Waldorf schooling: 

"On the level of soul, [Steiner] describes the human being as a threefold being, one who thinks, feels, and wills. On the level of consciousness, these three forces manifest as wakefulness (thinking), dreaming (feeling), and deep sleep (willing). On the level of physiology, they utilize the three 'systems' of nerve-senses (thinking), rhythmic-circulatory (feeling), and limb-metabolic (willing). On the level of human development, these forces unfold in discrete seven-year periods: willing dominates the first seven years of life, feelings become accessible to the child in the second seven-year period, and independent thinking blossoms after age fourteen.” — Eugene Schwartz in the Foreword to a collection of Steiner’s lectures and remarks, THE RENEWAL OF EDUCATION (Anthroposophic Press, 2001), p. 12.

A system is which everything seems to fit is appealing. But Steiner's system is unsupported by actual medical, psychological, or educational knowledge. It even violates mainstream theology. It is appealing mystical mumbo-jumbo.

Waldorf education, especially in the lower grades, includes extensive exposure to the Waldorf belief system, Anthroposophy. Much of this exposure comes in the form of stories that, to the uninitiated, may seem innocuous. Here, for instance, is a Waldorf account of the first day of Creation. It bears only a slight resemblance to any part of the Bible; it is fundamentally Anthroposophical.

“As God Father sat upon his throne, he called out seven words through heaven. The seven colors of the rainbow appeared and shone in seven circles around his throne ... Behind the rainbow, majestic fire angels lifted a great cloud curtain, revealing a hall of heaven that had never been seen before. In the hallway were thousands upon thousands of sleeping souls, countless as the stars in heaven ... The fire-angels lowered the curtail and opened the gate of heaven ... Light began to shine, to blaze and sparkle brightly. The darkness withdrew to the depths. Fire-angels stripped flames from their garments, and the new world grew warm. It bubbled and flamed and flashed. Thunder rumbled and rolled so loudly that the evil spirits in the deep huddled in fear. Above them the angels’ eyes, like a thousand suns, sparkled from the bright light of the first day of creation.” — AND THERE WAS LIGHT (Association of Waldorf Schools of North America, 2006), p. 13. The author, Jakob Streit, describes the purpose of his book: "This collection of stories and descriptions is the result of the author's work over a period of years introducing children in the lower grades to the world of the Old Testament ... If one succeeds in letting the reality of nature grow out of the divine, colorful background of a world creation, then awe, reverence, and love of nature can blossom ... It is hoped that [these stories] with touch the children's hearts and feelings...." [p. 109.]

• Waldorf schools usually claim to be nonsectarian and nondenominational. Yet Waldorf students are told religious story after religious story. These stories create and reinforce the spiritual atmosphere in Waldorf classrooms. • "God Father" is a unique Anthroposophical formulation. This is not God the Father or Jehovah, but an amorphous ground of being, the Godhead. [See "God" and "Genesis".] According to Steiner, "God the Father" is only a distant ideal, while Jehovah is a lowly god, one of many. • Anthroposophy is a polytheistic faith, with vast numbers of gods, including "fire angels." Many Waldorf stories condition children to accept polytheism. • There are no references to "fire angels" in the Bible, but in Anthroposophical doctrine fire angels or "fire spirits" are gods two levels above man, and they played a major role in the Creation. [See "Polytheism".] Waldorf students receive such lessons in stories like this one. • As for the number seven — there are no references to this number in Genesis 1 or 2, save for the seventh day of creation. In Anthroposophy, however, seven is a magic number — Steiner called it the number of perfection. [See "Magic Numbers".] Steiner taught that there will be seven main stages of human evolution, and there are seven planetary spheres (seven circles), and the human constitution has seven members, and children mature in seven-year-long periods, and, and... Here, Waldorf students are introduced to the importance of the number seven.  • The reference to thunder is at least an oblique reference to Thor, whom Steiner identified as a real god, one who played a leading role in human evolution. Waldorf students hear a great deal about Thor. [See "The Gods".] • As for "evil spirits in the deep," both the Bible and Anthroposophy speak of evil spirits. [See "Evil Ones".] In the Bible, their home is Hell. Anthroposophy rejects the Biblical description of Hell. Instead, according to Waldorf belief, evil beings are consigned to the abyss — the deep chasm separating Earth from the higher worlds. [See "Hell" and "Higher Worlds".] In this story, Waldorf students are told of evil spirits huddled in such a chasm or "deep."

This story, like many of the others told to young Waldorf students, presents Anthroposophical concepts in a seemingly acceptable form. Young children may absorb these concepts and be heavily influenced by them for the rest of their lives. Indeed, this is the purpose of such stories told in Waldorf schools.

A web of mythic tales is woven around young Waldorf students. Some of these stories are ostensibly Biblical, but actually they inculcate Anthroposophical doctrines, which often run counter to the Bible. A Waldorf educator gives this explanation of the Waldorf version of Creation:

"The Biblical story of the creation is couched in magnificent language which everyone can appreciate. To understand what is implied is not so easy. Fortunately, Rudolf Steiner has given an account of evolution from the spiritual scientific aspect and this, though complicated, clarifies the matter considerably. He describes three so-called planetary conditions of the earth. The first is a huge globe of heat, a manifestation of spiritual beings, in which our whole solar system was included as an undifferentiated mass. There was a development from the heat element into a sort of gaseous substance and light. At a third stage there was a condensation to liquid ...

“'In the beginning'

"This refers to the beginning of Earth evolution ... an interweaving of the elemental substances of heat, gas and liquid which are really the embodiment or means of expression of spiritual beings.

“'God'

"The word in the original Hebrew is Elohim. It is a plural and Elohim are high ranking [sic] spiritual beings, called in Greek the Exusiai, or by other [i.e., Anthroposophical] designation, Spirits of Form. God as a collective term is justified in so far [sic] as the Elohim work as a group, combining their individual talents with the aim of creating man." — Roy Wilkinson, COMMENTARY ON THE OLD TESTAMENT STORIES (Rudolf Steiner College Press, 2001), pp. 10-11.

The Waldorf meaning of the Creation story is radically unlike anything you will hear in a synagogue, church, or mosque. • "Spiritual science," in Waldorf belief, is Anthroposophy, the occult system created by Rudolf Steiner. It is also sometimes called occult science or esoteric science. • A key concept in Anthroposophy — one not near the hearts of anyone who takes the Bible literally — is evolution. • Evolution as described by Steiner has no connection to the biological process traced by modern science. Steiner taught that we have evolved through "planetary conditions" or "planetary stages" — we began on Saturn ("a huge globe of heat"), progressed to the Sun (gas and light), and then to the Moon (liquid), before coming to Earth, the fourth of our planetary stages. Each of the planetary stages encompasses the entire solar system, including the Earth as it exists during that period. • Our evolution is overseen by numerous "spiritual beings" or gods, who have a divine plan for our development to higher and higher forms. • "In the beginning..." Wilkinson explains that this phrase in the Bible refers not to the real beginning of the universe but to the beginning of our current, fourth planetary stage — life on Earth in its present incarnation. • The most shocking part of the Waldorf version of creation entails God. In Waldorf belief, God is not Jehovah, God Almighty, the Creator, or Allah. “God” is a committee of high-ranking spiritual beings. Anthroposophists see the Old Testament as a set of stories about the activities of numerous gods of varying ranks. Here, Wilkinson says that the gods called Spirits of Form (aka Elohim or Exusiai) were instrumental in creating us. • Wilkinson's discussion of the word "Elohim" is, at best, debatable. Here is a truer account: "Though Elohim is plural in form, it is understood in the singular sense. Thus, in Genesis the words, 'In the beginning God (Elohim) created the heavens and the earth,' Elohim is monotheistic in connotation, though its grammatical structure seems polytheistic. The Israelites probably borrowed the Canaanite plural noun Elohim and made it singular in meaning in their cultic practices and theological reflections." [ENCYCLOPEDIA BRITANNICA.] Thus, while Wilkinson argues that "Elohim" connotes a polytheistic universe, in fact the Bible is monotheistic. • The Spirits of Form are equivalent to the angelic order called Powers. See, e.g., Rudolf Steiner, EXCURSUS ON THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO MARK (Rudolf Steiner Publishing Co., 1937), lecture 4, GA 124.

“The spiritual world is always around us, and we can work more consciously if we note the transition as we move from the earthly world to the spiritual world and vice versa. Thus at night we can say as we enter sleep, ‘Now I am entering the spiritual world,’ and in the morning as we awaken, we can say, ‘Now I am entering the earthly world.’” — Helmut von Kügelgen, essay #1 in WORKING WITH THE ANGELS (Waldorf Early Childhood Association of North America 2004), p. 3. 

Here we have the central error of Anthroposophical thought. Anthroposophists think that when they go to sleep, they are entering the spiritual world, and they tell themselves that the experiences they have then are more significant than the experiences they have when they are awake. The truth is somewhat different. When people fall asleep, they are asleep, and the experiences they have then — dreams — have no real meaning at all. 

Anthroposophists make the same mistake about their waking experiences, mistaking their fantasies and delusions for clairvoyant wisdom. In general, Anthroposophists think that they often enter or at least perceive the spiritual world. They are mistaken, but this error forms the core of their ideology.

At Waldorf schools, there is a “fundamental polarity between teacher and parents. ... [T]he role of the teachers [is] to take primary responsibility for the incarnation of the child* ... [T]he teacher is the king or queen of their classroom.” The role of the parents is to ask themselves “What can I do for [the school].”  Parents help “incarnate the school” by becoming “the financial pillar.” 

Parents are often pleased that the Waldorf curriculum includes so many Bible stories. They usually do not realize that these stories are twisted out of shape and used to inculcate occult Anthroposophical doctrines. Here is an example: “The Old Testament story of Cain and Abel reveals the transition from Lemuria to Atlantis ... Cain and Abel do not represent individuals of that time, but rather, they represent humanity at the beginning of Atlantis. Cain, the first born son of Adam and Eve, is the last born of the Lemurian age and the first born of the Atlantean age ... As Cain’s heritage is from before the Fall, he is not aware of the difference between good and evil, but as the world begins to absorb the contrast of good and evil, Cain become capable of doing evil, and ‘Cain attacked his brother Abel and murdered him’ (Gen. 4:8).” — EveLynn B. Debusschere, THE REVELATION OF EVOLUTIONARY EVENTS (Association of Waldorf Schools of North America, 1997), pp. 22-24. 

• Anthroposophists believe that before the current epoch, humans lived on two lost continents, first Lemuria and then Atlantis. [See “Prehistory 101“ and “Atlantis and the Aryans”.] • In Waldorf belief, many of the individuals in the Bible are actually composite portraits of humanity at various stages of spiritual evolution. • Quoting the Bible, the author tries to make her extremely unbiblical narrative seem consistent with orthodox teachings. • Steiner taught that the general trend of evolution is toward spiritual betterment, but he also said that the universe teems with evil beings and even evil gods. “[W]e are watching the battle waged by the good gods against the evil gods....” — Rudolf Steiner, KARMIC RELATIONSHIPS, Vol. II (Rudolf Steiner Press, 1974), p. 251. [See “Evil” and “Evil Ones”.]

Atlantis, Lemuria, evolution, multiple gods [see "Polytheism"] — this is not the Bible that Jews and Christians revere.

"[A]n angel of God led Adam into a cave. The angel showed Adam a book in which the seventy-two Signs of Light were written. All the wisdom of the world was written in the book. The angel taught Adam to read the signs in the book and said, 'Before you die, you must give this book to a man whose soul is filled with the light of God, so that the wisdom of the angels may continue to shine on earth' ... The Book of Life was not written on parchment; it was Light written in Light." — Jakob Streit, AND THERE WAS LIGHT (Association of Waldorf Schools of North America, 2006), p. 45.

* Steiner attributed this tenet to Iamblichus. See the lecture "Spiritual Wisdom in the Early Christian Centuries", GA 213.

“An awareness of reincarnation and karma is essential if Christianity is to be alive in the present and future. Even everyday practical life and our social contacts become at one and the same time decidely more ‘Christian’ and more ‘human’ if we have not only a theoretical knowledge of reincarnation and karma but our heart forces live with it.” — Pietro Archiati, REINCARNATION IN MODERN LIFE (Temple Lodge Publishing, 1997), p. vii.

Reincarnarion and karma are essential components of Rudolf Steiner's revised form of gnostic Christianity. But these concepts violate the central orthodox Christian doctrine that we live one life on Earth after which we go to our reward or punishment. In Christianity, Jesus Christ is our Savior; in Anthroposophy, Christ is also our Prototype who showed us the sort of human being we should evolve to become. Eventually, we can become Christ’s equal. From a mainstream Christian perspective, this is heresy. The Biblical Christ is one of the three Persons of God Almighty — He stands infinitely above us. Anthroposophis believe that we can rise to Christ’s level — and even higher. Looking far into the future, Steiner pronounced the ultimate heresy: “[W]e shall have gradually achieved the transformation of our own being into what is called in Christianity ‘the Father.’” — Rudolf Steiner, THE LORD’S PRAYER (Rudolf Steiner Press, 2007), p. 17.

[Full disclosure. I am an agnositic. Steiner’s teachings are heresies for Christians, not for me. For me, they are merely nonsense.]

* I.e., clairvoyance.

** A Waldorf teacher-training institution.

Waldorf schools emphasize myths, legends, and fairy tales. This can seem sweet. But you may be surprised to learn what Waldorf teachers have in mind. They think the stories they tell their young charges are true, at a spiritual level; they think Anthroposophical truths lie within. Here, for instance, is a Waldorf teacher discussing "Hansel and Gretel.” He finds multiple Steinerish concepts in the story. He does not aim to teach young kids these concepts, overtly. But he would like to plant seeds in the children’s souls. He would nudge them to feel and dream as he and his Waldorf colleagues do — he would start the kids down the path toward Rudolf Steiner’s embrace. 

“The story portrays spirit and soul descending into a physical body and ascending again, enriched, to the spiritual world ... The story could also be looked upon as an initiation process. Soul and spirit are engaged in developing higher organs ... Yet another interpretation would be to consider the story as one of human evolution. With the expulsion from Paradise the human being enters the material world. Through his experiences he regains the faculty of spiritual perception in a new way and regains his spiritual home enriched.” — Roy Wilkinson, THE INTERPRETATION OF FAIRY TALES (Rudolf Steiner College Press, 1984). 

• Anthroposophists believe that we have both spirits and souls. We descended to life on Earth from spiritual worlds, and we will ascend again. • Initiation — the process of gaining access to hidden spiritual knowledge — is near the heart of Anthroposophy. [See “Inside Scoop”.] • “Higher organs” are nonphysical, invisible organs, predominantly organs of clairvoyance. (“[O]rgans of clairvoyance build themselves...” — Rudolf Steiner, KNOWLEDGE OF THE HIGHER WORLDS AND ITS ATTAINMENT (Anthroposophic Press, 1944), p. 28.) • Evolution is another central concept in Anthroposophy — we have evolved from Saturn and are on our way to Vulcan. We lost “paradise” by coming to Earth (a sadly material place), but we will move on. [See “Matters of Form”.] • The “faculty of spiritual perception” is clairvoyance. Ancient people had it; we tend not to have it now — but we can regain it, in an improved form, by following Anthroposophy.

* Lemniscates (figure eights) appear often in Anthroposophical literature, representing the interchange of forces between the high and the low, the celestial and the mundane, the living and the dead.

Stalking Horses, Front Organizations, the Vanguard

To conclude this page, let's hear from Rudolf Steiner himself

and briefly consider some of the present-day implications of the following statement:

"Nothing that is contained in our social problems will ever be solved until science becomes spiritual again. This can happen only when science is prepared to look for the spiritual element in every single thing — whether it be a potato or a comet." —  Rudolf Steiner, THE EVOLUTION OF THE EARTH AND MAN AND THE INFLUENCE OF THE STARS (Anthroposophic Press, 1987), p. 220.

This is Steiner's basic proposition: Modern, "materialistic" science is faulty. Only "spiritual science" — i.e., his own teachings, based on his claimed use of clairvoyance — can yield the higher truth, which is that everything physical is a manifestation of spiritual beings: gods, nature spirits, and demons. This is the fundamental lesson that Waldorf faculties try to convey — usually subtly, often indirectly, almost always with a mystical sensibility – to their students. And the goal is, in part, political: to solve "our social problems." Anthroposophists want to remake all human institutions in accordance with "spiritual science." Waldorf schools serve as the vanguard for this revolutionary effort. (Governments that lend state support to the Waldorf movement — as in the UK today — may be severely distressed if the efforts of the Waldorf movement take wider effect. Bear in mind, in addition to creating a new form of education, Steiner prescribed "reforms" of science, religion, the arts, agriculture, medicine, government — in effect, all spheres of human activity.  The likelihood that the Waldorf movement will reach all its aims is extremely remote. Nonetheless, we should understand those aims and think carefully before taking actions that promote them.)